[Terrapreta] if yer not forest...

[Harmon Seaver]

David Yarrow wrote:
> one of my future projects is to develop a market for acorns -- oak nuts.  in many indigenous cultures worldwide (including the ancient druids of britain), acorns were a major food source.  a particular process was used to process acorns into meal that was used to make everything from gruel to bread.
>
> effort should be made today to introduce cooking with acorn meal as a new natural food, complete with recipes and ready-made, ready-to-eat products.  if a new market is educated and cultivated for this ancient traditional forest food, it will provide a significant new outlet for forest owners to make a living from their trees besides cutting them down for timber, firewood and biochar.  and it will likely prove be a tremendous nutritional benefit, too.
>
>   
       IIRC from anthropology class, only a few of the oak species had 
truly edible acorns. Some tribes in what is now California were blessed 
with very abundant and tasty acorns, but most oaks have pretty acrid 
tasting acorns. They can be shelled and soaked in several changes of 
water to remove the tannins, but that also removes much of the nutrients 
as well.